In a recent meeting of the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) council, as Mayor Priya responded to questions raised by a councillor, Deputy Mayor Magesh Kumar interrupted her. “What the Mayor means to say is…,” he cut in, answering on her behalf. Though her face reflected displeasure, she waited until Magesh was done and asserted her response. Priya is Chennai’s first Dalit woman Mayor and the third woman after Tara Cherian and Kamakshi Jayaraman.
The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), which won a majority in Chennai’s local body elections in 2022, was lauded for making R Priya the Greater Chennai Corporation’s (GCC) Mayor, a move many perceived as progressive. Over the last seven months, TNM has been in regular attendance at the council meetings held in the Chennai's Ripon building, and in almost every meeting, it was noticed that the Mayor is often patronised and infantilised by male members of the council.
In the meeting held on October 31, a male DMK councillor greeted the Mayor by saying, “Penmayil aanmayodu alum Mayor Priya,” which translates to: ‘The female Mayor who embodies the masculine strength to rule.’ He then went on to say that she entered the council hall as a “thendral” (a gentle breeze), but has now transformed into a “puyal” (a cyclone). At the same meeting, another councillor said, “Mazhalayin saandraga thigazhum Mayor,” which translates as ‘Priya’s face is an example of child-like innocence.’
While these seemingly ‘harmless’ comments elicited a smile on most councillors’ faces, with some of them having even broken into applause, they are chauvinist in nature. The DMK councillor’s comment about Priya imbibing masculine traits normalises the dim view that political posts are tailor-made for men, and women are at best, an anomaly in such settings. Such comments promote gender polarisation and the idea that women can only garner respect in the workplace if they are ‘man enough’.
Commenting on this, A Priyadharshini, CPI(M) councillor from Ward 98, told TNM that such statements are objectionable. “By saying ‘aanmai’ (masculinity) and comparing it to ‘aalumai’ (ruling), he was indirectly implying that power by default lies with men, which is an unacceptable statement.” She pointed out, “In these addresses, if you note how they greet the Deputy Mayor Magesh Kumar, they often use words like ‘veeram’ (valour).”
Infantilising a woman, especially at the workplace, amounts to indirectly saying that she needs someone to look after her like a child would, thereby, implying that her decisions cannot be relied upon. However, this cannot be limited to gender, because for a woman like Priya who is bogged down by both her gender and her caste identity, such comments amount to casteist behaviour, dictating who has access to power and who doesn’t.
Priyadharshini also said that such instances of others cutting the Mayor as she spoke were more rampant in 2022 soon after Priya had been elected. “The Mayor was new then, so chairpersons used to cut in and speak if questions of procedural delays or previously completed works were raised. Now such instances have gone down, but the Deputy Mayor continues to do this. Even in the meeting held in October, the Deputy Mayor started answering before the Mayor. When he did that, she looked angry and in fact, asked the next councillor to start speaking over the Deputy Mayor,” the CPI(M) councillor pointed out.
Earlier, in August 2023, video clips and pictures of DMK’s ex-MLA Ranganathan turning the Mayor with force to face the camera while campaigning for the Erode by-polls, and allegedly brushing up against her at Dheeran Chinnamalai’s memorial event, had surfaced. Although netizens and media reports levelled allegations of caste discrimination and sexual harassment, the DMK took no action against him.
Priya’s case is not isolated, and many times, several female politicians have been victims of sexist sidelining. To cite an example from Kerala, in 2019, when IUML legislator KM Shaji remarked that the state of West Bengal is strong despite being ruled by a woman (referring to Mamata Banerjee), ex-Health Minister KK Shailaja famously asked, “What’s different if a woman is in power?”, insisting that Shaji’s demeaning remark be taken off the Assembly records.
Similarly, Kerala CPI(M) senior leader Vijayaraghavan, in 2019, ‘cautioned’ Dalit Congress MP Ramya Haridas while visiting sexual harassment accused KK Kuhnalikutty, to imply that as a woman she would always be seen as an object. BJP’s Chandrakant Patil also asked NCP MP Supriya Sule to “go home and cook,” in 2022, bringing out the inherent misogynist bias that women are meant to cook and men are ordained to do important jobs.
It is important to note that at present, women only constitute about 15% of Lok Sabha and 13% of Rajya Sabha. A similar trend thrives at several state Assemblies as well. Even with the Women’s Reservation Bill coming into effect in the coming years, the extent to which women can assert the power vested in them by the law remains to be seen given the unforgiving structures of patriarchy they are forced to navigate through.
The DMK actively supported the Women’s Reservation Bill in September this year, which seeks to provide 33% of the total seats in the Lok Sabha, state Assemblies and the Legislative Assembly of the National Capital Territory of Delhi to women. But the party’s Mayor, an elected female representative, is subjected to sexism in the council hall, month after month.